Warmweed Horses
by Alyss Mainwaring
Summary: My tale of Will relapsing due to warmweed. No spoilers for bk4 even though it is set after it. Will is constantly having little attacks and each time Halt is there to help him. What happens the one time he isn't? How much trouble can one brained child get into having Tug watch over him? Or is Tug an instigator of the trouble? T for swear word in end of AN at the end of the one-shot


I'm not too certain about this title...

 **Setting:** _ **Depends on your brain and where you have read the books up to.**_

 **Spoilers:** _ **Realistically spoilers up to book 4, however there isn't any really beyond book three.**_

* * *

Will looked over to the target area and was forced to sigh. He knew rather well that Halt believed that practice would improve his archery skills. Will to be frank, believed this to be a load of bullshit.

Only three of his arrows came anywhere near hitting the targets. _Thwack!_ His fourth arrow hit smack in the middle and in surprise Will jumped up, lost his balance and fell while Halt shook his head in embarrassment.

"If you practiced like I told you to, you wouldn't be so surprised," Halt stated then started walking away.

Grudgingly, WIll picked up his bow again, aiming an imaginary arrow at Halt's head as he walked away. Halt suddenly turned around and slipping an arrow out of his quiver without drawing his bow, pointed it at Will in his hand and warned; "Don't you dare!"

In the background Will was able to hear TUg and Abelard neighing the words "stupid idiot".

Will pretended to be shooting until Halt had turned a corner then he threw his bow done in a huff and stomped off.

There were just a few days when it was all too much and this was one of them. With the effects of the warmweed mainly gone. he was prone to having moments. Most of the time Halt was with him and helped him to calm down from whatever mood swing appeared. The sudden snap and relapse to those moments in the field or cabin in the mountains, begging for his next dose of warmweed. Those were the moments Halt feared most, wondering if his apprentice would ever just snap out of it again. Just in case, even though it fair near killed him to do so, he kept a small amount hidden in his room to last until he was able to get more help for Will.

This time was different.

Halt wasn't around to help.

Tug, knowing something was off, neighed loudly in an attempt to get Halt's attention then started off after his young master. It wasn't that difficult to find Will, but the fact that he had abandoned the thing that shot sharp pointy things was worrying.

The loyal horse grabbed Will and put him on his back. He felt the reins jerks so he tugged back to make sure Will knew he didn't appreciate that. He then started to gently trot away from the home direction, calling out to Halt once more as he did so.

Will in his anger, was not thinking and could only comply with his horses urges. Together they rode away, one completely unaware of anything other than his grip on the reins and the steady beat of the hooves of the other.

* * *

The first neigh from Tug made Halt sit up straight, place his coffee and paperwork down and listen silently for intruders. After a few minutes of nothing Halt moved out to see Abelard to ask him what was going on. He opened the door to the cabin instinctively not looking as he reached behind and inside, gathering his arrows and bow. The next action of his was to glance up in the process of making his way down the three stairs off his verandah.

Halt froze.

Occasionally his horse did something surprising, more often, though only slightly, another horse did. After all, Halt had his horse for a long time and was comfortable with the way it should act. Which is why he was so confused now. Abelard was standing with his front two hooves on the bottom-most step.

 _I called a while ago,_ the horse seemed to say. Halt snorted and raised an eyebrow.

"It wasn't you. It was Tug," he responded. If there was one thing Halt should have known by now it was that he should have never engaged in a verbal spar to begin with. The horse would always win.

Abelard gave a calling noise.

"Really?"

 _Really._

Halt walked over to the stable because as smart as he was, Abelard was still unable to self saddle. After all the appropriate things here were done, Halt set off for the last place he saw Will.

The practice field was empty and the sight of the abandoned arrows sent warning signs shooting through Halt's mind. He snapped back to business and out of his worry when he heard a second call from Tug further off than the first.

"Take me to him?" Halt asked his horse, remounting. Abelard shook his head and started walking to where he knew Tug was taking him.

He knew Tug believed Will just needed to cool off.

"Where are we going?" Halt asked Abelard.

 _I know, that's all that matters,_ replied the horse with a slight neigh behind it.

"Stupid horse," Halt muttered, letting his worry for Will get the better of his common sense. The next thing he knew was a long gone familiar feeling of Abelard bunching his muscles beneath him, then the power of flight.

With a loud thud Halt fell like a graceful sack of potatos to the ground.

 _You're meant to throw yourself at the ground and miss!_ Abelard smartly commented.

"I'm worried, ok? Let's just keep walking. You lead."

Halt could have sworn that was a horsey smirk on Abelard's face as he turned away and started walking in the direction they had heard the second call again. After a little more walking Halt suddenly realised where they were heading to and took the lead, going from a walk to a ground-eating jog in an attempt to get to Tug before he dropped Will in the river to snap him out of his funk.

"Tug!" he called out desperately. With each step he took his pace grew faster and more worried. Abelard behind him didn't see what the commotion was all about but acknowledged that this was the speed they were going to travel and obediently matched his pace with Halt every time it changed.

off in the distance Tug heard the call and recognised the utter panic in Halt's voice. For the first time in the situation he paused thinking out the actions he had planned. Maybe it wasn't the best idea to throw Will into a river. When he was fully conscious and making sarcastic retorts maybe, but now, there was the possibility of him drowning. Well he would have rescued him when Will didn't float to the top with his mouth up for a little while…

He stopped where he was an started panicking only seconds later when Will slid off his back and started walking off. Dutifully he followed, cautiously, making sure that he wasn't able to sense anything harmful nearby that could damage the health of Will.

Well he was panicking until Will literally ran right into Halt.

The older man grabbed the younger as he stumbled and straightened him up again.

"Will! What do you-"

Will cut him off with a mutter. "I need to continue running, Evelyn. You don't understand! Halt will come rescue us! It will just take some time, that's all."

Halt felt his heart sink. Will had fallen into the past with the help of yet another strangely recurrent warmweed relapses. Quickly he checked his eyes and was disheartened to see them bloodshot.

"You have to come back with me to the cabin, Will," Halt told him gently. He made sure that he had a strong grip on the Will's elbow as he turned to tell Tug to follow. Will was known for pulling himself free when Halt was least expecting it in moments like this, only to go running for who knows where as his mind was completely scrambled.

Just as he thought this, Will attempted to escape. Halt's grip tightened and in the scuffle he ended up with a rather strong punch to the left eye and Will ended up on the ground being restrained.

"It kills me to do this," Halt muttered quietly as he placed thumb restraints on Will. "I just don't know of any other way to keep you from hurting yourself."

With much difficulty he managed to get Will on Abelard and together the group began walking back to the cabin. Halt dreading the fact that he was going to have to tell Crowley about this episode, possibly leading to relocation of Will until he stopped having the symptoms and was well enough to continue training, if ever, and Will muttering to himself moments from his life changing journey.

As they reached the cabin Halt paused suddenly as the noise of another set of horses hooves galloping towards the cabin. At first he thought it was someone to report a crime, meaning he would be forced to abandon Will to his own fate, hoping against hope that he wouldn't do anything stupid, later realising that Will hsad asked if Alyss was allowed to come and visit him on this day since it had been a while since his last attack. Halt after some pretended deliberation had said yes, raising his cup of coffee to his mouth to hide the excitement Will showed at the prospect.

"I am so sorry," he told his apprentice as they walked over. There was nothing to be done about it all now.

* * *

 **So I was planning to use this weekend to update everything nearly as I am house sitting with literally nothing really to do (as there is no T.V. and the computer I'm on doesn't even play videos and is running 2003). EXCEPT for the fact that I have just realised that my google drive folder hasn't synced for some reason to this computer and so I have access to NOTHING! Nothing includes my assignments that I was sent here to work on away from my family.**

 **Well. A lots obviously going to be done then… (not)**

 **On another topic, I was singing to myself earlier (as I do when I'm alone in a different house and everything has been deemed too quiet).**

 **Me as I attempt to pour milk into tea - "Let's-"**

 _ ***looks down to seal another seal on the unopened milk***_

" **Fuck!... No! Wait! Be alone together…"**

 _ ***looks around to see if anyone heard, except for the fact that it was possibly the loudest exclamation ever. Then realises that the actual next lyrics of the song doesn't help case***_

 **Good news is that my tea tastes wonderful. English Breakfast at 10pm at night.**

 **Best thing I have ever done right there.**

 **And if it seems as though my writing style has changed recently(ish) in a bizarre way, I blame it on needing to spend every waking moment reading either Cicero in English or Caesar in Latin.**

 **Ergo, I can't engrish any more mate!**

 **Joke of this oneshot:**

 _What year was Caesar assassinated?_

Year of the salad!

 **Send me your tumblr and I'll stalk?**

 **Alyss Mainwaring**


End file.
